Leucothoe acutilobata Ledoyer, 1978

Kristine N. White & Traudl Krapp-Schickel, 2017, Red Sea Leucothoidae (Crustacea: Amphipoda) including new and re-described species, European Journal of Taxonomy 324, pp. 1-40 : 8-10

Leucothoe acutilobata Ledoyer, 1978

Fig. 3A

Leucothoe acutilobata Ledoyer, 1978: 295 –97, fig. 36.

Type locality

Mauritius.

Material examined

ISRAEL: 3 specimens, Eilat, stn 108, 4 May 1969, U. Schiecke leg. (MVR).

SUDAN: 2 specimens, Port Sudan, stn 154, Dec. 1970, U. Schiecke leg.; 6 specimens, Massa Sheik Ibrahim near Port Sudan, stn 173, 14 Dec. 1970, U. Schiecke leg.; 6 specimens, same locality and date as previous, stn 175, U. Schiecke leg.; 2 specimens, Massa Arakiyai near Port Sudan, from sponge, 1–3 m, 8 Dec. 1970, U. Schiecke leg.; 11 specimens, same locality and date as previous, U. Schiecke leg. All material deposited at MVR.

Distribution

Red Sea (present study); Western Indian Ocean: Madagascar, Mauritius ( Ledoyer 1978).

Remarks

Differences between this species and L. predenticulata Ledoyer, 1978 are difficult to determine (see Ledoyer 1978: 300 and this paper), but the posterodistal lobes of the bases of pereopods 5–7 are always clearly lengthened and widened in regular progression, and the inferior half of the posterior margin of pereopod 7 is evenly rounded (vs abrupt corner in the middle in L. predenticulata ). Young specimens have a gnathopod 2 propodus palm nearly smooth; the serrations become more visible with age, but remain regular (vs irregular in L. predenticulata ). Mature specimens of this species can reach 5–6 mm, while most of the collected material is 3.5–4.5 mm, similar to L. predenticulata .

Ecology

This species has been collected among sponges (present study) and among coral ( Ledoyer 1978).

Figures

Fig. 3. A. Leucothoe acutilobata Ledoyer, 1978, ♀, length 6.0 mm. B. Leucothoe predenticulata Ledoyer, 1978, length 4.5 mm.